The Unknown
by a.pal2013
Summary: Stevie is dealing with something and will need her family's help to get her through it.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay so this idea has been trapped in my head for quite some time now and I finally decided to write it down.  
Sadly, I own nothing of Madam Secretary and am only borrowing their characters. **

It was a Thursday afternoon and Stevie found herself sitting in her doctor's office. She looked around the office the small office. Although it was small, her doctor had done a good job at decorating it to not only look bigger, but to help her patients feel more at ease. Personal touches of family members and vacation photos lined the ocean blue walls and the chair she was sitting in wasn't as uncomfortable as she was expecting. She had almost started to relax until she was startled from her daze by the jiggle of the door handle. Her doctor entered missing the signature smile that Stevie had come to be familiar with since becoming her patient. Since growing out of her pediatrician and going to college, she was glad to have gotten a doctor that she had felt comfortable around. Dr. Blythe had been nothing but friendly, honest, and patient with Stevie since she started seeing her about a year and a half ago; but today that friendly face was replaced with one that Stevie couldn't seem to read.

She had started feeling sick about a month ago. It was like a flu that she just couldn't get rid of. It started with a sore throat that just never seemed to want to go away despite the over-the-counter meds she had taken. Then exhaustion and fatigue seemed to creep up on her so much so that she barely had the energy to study. She had chalked up both symptoms to the stress of her final exams and her staying up too late trying to prepare. That is until about a week ago when one moment she was getting out of bed in the morning, and the next she had woken up on her bedroom floor. Waking up with no knowledge of what happened while she was unconscious or what caused it, freaked her out. She had called her doctor the same day and Dr. Blythe was able to fit Stevie in on the same day. Dr. Blythe had ordered a ton of blood tests and had called Stevie just this morning, asking her to come into her office to discuss them. So there she sat, looking at her doctor, and knowing without her friendly doctor having to speak, that something was really wrong.

"I'm sorry to tell you this Stevie," Dr. Blythe started, looking up from the report on her desk. "But you have Leukemia," she finished. Stevie took a moment to absorb what she was being told. She blinked a few time and only looked up at the sound of her doctor's voice.

"Stevie did you hear me?" she heard her doctor say with concern.

She nodded her head and finally met her doctor's eyes. The doctor's eyes looked sad and she suddenly looked older than she ever had. She wondered what her eyes looked like during that moment. Did they look sad or scared; maybe confused. Her mind was racing in so many directions she couldn't focus on any particular question.

"Um…" Stevie started. "What do we do now?" she stated. She needed a plan. She needed to know there was something she could work towards to fix this. To fix her.

"Firstly," her doctor began, "although your test results indicate Leukemia; it doesn't show us what type of Leukemia, or how far it has progressed." Dr. Blythe's eyes met her own to make sure she was comprehending the information. She continued, "And since I'm not an oncologist, I've contacted a few doctors who would be willing to take you on as a patient," Dr. Blythe stated, passing Stevie a few business cards.

"One of these doctors is local and near to the university; but I've also given you the names of two doctors who are in the D.C. Metro area where you've told me your family is located."

Stevie nodded as she fiddled with the business cards in her lap.

"Stevie. The most important advice I can give you now is to go home and tell your family. It will be tough, but their support is going to be crucial during your treatment and recovery," she said.

Stevie again found herself nodding her head, not knowing anything else to do or say.

"Thank you Dr. Blythe," she stated getting up from the comfortable chair. "I will be sure to contact one of these doctors," she said as she shook the woman's hand. She could feel the remorse from the woman's handshake and suddenly wanted to be anywhere but there. With a small smile, Stevie turned her back and walked quickly out of the office.

She found herself in her dorm room slowing folding clothes and placing them into her suitcase as she thought about everything. She looked around the room and smiled to herself. She loved this room. It was filled with pictures of her family and friends, as well as some momentos from the fun things she had done while at the university. Her suitcase was almost packed and she wondered if she should pack up more. She was initially supposed to go home that night anyway as she had finished her finals and had a two weeks break before the next semester started.

 _I don't think I'm going to be returning next semester_ , she thought as she zipped her suitcase closed. If she didn't pack it up now, she'd probably just end up having to return, probably with her family, to finish it.

The thought of her family made a small sob come out of her mouth and she pushed it down before her tears came uncontrollably. She wouldn't cry; not yet anyway. _A McCord doesn't show weaknes_ s, she thought to herself. She would cry later when she was sure that her roommate wouldn't come barging in and interrupted her. She worked for the next few hours putting away her belongings into the few boxes she had on hand and placed the boxes into her closet. There was no way she would get everything today and her family would have to help her with the large stuff anyway so she would just leave the boxes there, glad that she could at least box up most of her belongings so that it wouldn't be too big of a chore to do later. With that she grabbed her suitcase and purse and said goodbye to her dorm room.

The train into the city took forever and she was glad to finally be back home as she was completely exhausted. She said a small hello to the security detail outside of her home and stepped through the iron gates. She grabbed her keys but stopped before unlocking the door. She took a few deep breaths. One part of her was glad of the late hour as she hoped the household would be asleep so that she wouldn't have to face them now. She knew she needed to tell them, that it wasn't something that she could put off long. But if she saw their faces now, she didn't know if she would be able to stop herself from breaking down into hysterics. The other part of her wanted to do just that. She wanted to have her mom hug her and tell her that everything would be alright while she cried into her shoulder. She couldn't wait any longer to see what awaited her and she turned to key in the lock and pushed open the door.

She hadn't been to this house many times since her mom became Secretary of State, but it still felt like home. She felt comfortable here and she didn't realize how much she missed it. She was greeted with darkness with the exception a dim light in the office and realized that everyone was indeed asleep. _Of course they would be_ , she thought. _It's nearly 1:00 in the morning and it's still a weekday tomorrow._

She shook her head at her stupid thought that they'd all still be awake and quietly made her way up the stairs. She closed her bedroom door behind her and took another breath and she leaned against the door. Her room was sparse compared to her dorm room. The white walls were barren and it was definitely a lot neater and more organized than her dorm. Her bedspread matched the walls but the many pillows on her bed featured different patterns and colors which livened up the room. Her eyes moved to the very large bookcase that was filled to the brim with all of her favorites. She hadn't wanted to transport her books with her to the dorm, so she would grab a handful whenever she visited and would take them back with her. When she finished those she would get by at the library. She had always had a love for books. Her bookcase stood against the wall near to the large bay window and window seat below it. She loved the window seat and it had been her favorite place to read when she visited. The seat was perfect and comfortable and overlooked a small park that was plentiful with trees. Moving across her room, she puller her pajamas from her suitcase and headed to the bathroom.

She had showered until the hot water had run cold and had cried almost the entire time. She was careful to quiet her sobs so as not to wake the household and now that she was laying in bed, she could honestly say that she felt a little more focused after releasing her tears. She had cried for everything. For the sadness that she felt and that her family would feel; for the stress that it would put on her family; for the frustration for causing her to break from college; and for the pain that she would undoubtedly suffer during treatment.

With a little more clear head, she rolled over and let her exhaustion finally take her to sleep.

 **I have a general idea of where I want this story to go for the next few chapters but I am fully accepting of any ideas that you guys may have on where this story goes in the long run. Reviews are greatly appreciative and they are truly one of the things that makes me want to write more chapters. Good and bad comments are welcome regarding anything.**

 **Thanks.**


	2. Chapter 2

She opened her eyes only to be greeted with a very bright ray of light. Reaching over and grabbing

her phone from where it lay on her nightstand, she saw the time was already 10:00 a.m. She never thought she'd sleep through the noises of her family's morning routines but between the late hour that she got in and the emotional roller coaster of the previous day she shouldn't have been surprised.

She rolled out of bed and grabbed some comfy clothes to wear and headed downstairs in search for coffee. She had just poured some grinds into the machine when she was startled by the sound of her dad.

"Hey sleepy head," he said giving her a hug.

Surprised to see him home so late she returned his bear hug, happy to see him.

"What are you doing home so late Dad?" she asked. "I figured you would've been at work already."

"I don't have class until 11:00," he explained. "I was just about to get going."

"What time did you get in last night?" he continued. You should've woken us. We didn't even know you got in until Mom's security mentioned it," he said stepping back to examine his daughter.

Stevie turned back to making her coffee and continued. "I didn't get in until about after 1:00 a.m. and I didn't want to wake any of you, I knew you guys still had work and school," she said turning back around to face him.

"How's everything going hun, you look a little tired," he asked with his typical father concern voice.

At the same time the coffee machine beeped signaling her coffee was ready. Thankful for the distraction, she turned her back to him again and lied.

"I'm doing okay, just worn out from finals and everything," she said during her walk to the fridge in search for creamer.

"Well I'm glad that you finally have a break and that you can rest a bit before next semester starts," he said.  
"I have to get going," he said as he reached over and grabbed his keys from the kitchen counter. "I'm so glad your home Stevie," he said as he approached her and wrapped her in another hug. "We all really missed you," he said placing a kiss on the top of her head.

"I missed you all too," she returned. "Have a good day at work," she started. "I'll see you later."

She broke the hug and watched as he grabbed his suit jacket and briefcase and returned a small wave as he left for work.

A second after the door closed she released a few small tears that had been threatening to fall during her hug with them. She had forgotten how much she truly missed her dad and his hugs.

A few hours later she found herself walking towards the library. Not in search of entertaining novels but for information regarding cancer. Earlier she had chosen Dr. Sampson from the few doctors that Dr. Blythe had recommended and gave him a call. After receiving her records from Dr. Blythe he had called her back and explained the additional tests she would have to undergo to determine the type of Leukemia she had. He had also explained that although her myeloblast levels weren't extremely high, she needed to be seen as soon as possible. Dr. Sampson had agreed to see her the following morning despite the weekend. So at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow morning she would meet with Dr. Sampson, undergo additional blood tests, and undergo a bone marrow aspiration.

After hanging up the phone with the doctor, she had needed to get out of the house, to get some fresh air, and to think about everything. She also needed more information about everything. Of course she could've used Google, but she needed to hold the information in her hands and have the opportunity to flip back and forth between pages and books to get the information she needed. She also preferred real books to the internet and she wasn't going to compromise now. As she walked towards the library she noticed people staring at her, but didn't think too much of it until she was confronted by a large group of college students just outside the library doors. Everyone wanted to get a picture of the Secretary of State's daughter. She suddenly realized that she couldn't just walk into the library and begin grabbing books about cancer without someone noticing and snapping a picture. Rumors flew through the town so quickly, her friends and family would find out her secret within hours.

She quickly turned back and kept walking.

 _How could she be so careles_ s, she thought to herself. _Allison and Jason would've found out by Twitter and Mom's staff would be sure to find it_. Her thoughts swirled in her head as she found a bench to sit at. She needed to tell her family and it needed to be tonight, before she slipped up and accidently revealed it. After coming to her conclusion she picked herself up from the park bench and walked the streets back home.

After getting home, she still had a few hours before her parents would be home and she decided the best thing for her to do, since she didn't want to risk becoming even more terrified with Doctor Google, was to keep her hands busy. She immediately went to one of her other favorite activities and soon found herself surrounded by kitchen supplies and ingredients as she prepared her mom's favorite lasagna. Her dad had been the one to introduce her to cooking as her mom had always been terrible at it. She remember back to Alison's sixth birthday party. For whatever reason that year her mom had decided that instead of buying a cake for Aly's party; she would make one herself. The night before the party, she remembered her mom had gotten distracted with Jason and the cake had burned in the oven. It was a disaster and her mom had had to run to the bakery the next morning to get another cake in time for the party. Her made still hadn't attempted to bake another cake since then.

At 5:30, just as she was taking the lasagna out of oven she heard the door open to find her dad again.

"Hey dad," she said as she turned off the oven.

"Hey honey," he replied, setting his briefcase down in the office.

"What smells so good?" he asked.

"I'm making lasagna," she answered.

"Oooh, your mom's favorite."

"Allison and Jase came home earlier and said they had your permission to go over to their friends' houses tonight?" she asked him as she grabbed some plates to set the table.

"Yeah, they both texted me," he said. "Apparently Andrew got the new Call of Duty that Jason can't miss out on and Allison's friend Hannah just got dumped by her boyfriend and Allison wanted to be there to support her."

Just as he finished his explanation the front door opened and she heard her mom's heels on the floorboards.

"Stevie, Stevie, Stevie!" her mom said excitedly as she rushed over to hug her.  
Stevie melted in her mom's arms just as she always did when she hugged her.

"It's so good to have you home sweetie," she said pulling back to look at her.

"I'm so glad to be home," she said with a smile. "I missed you guys so much."

"Well now we will drive you nuts for a few weeks while you're on vacation and then you'll be dying to get away from us…. Oh my goodness! What is that smell? It's smells so good," her mom rambled.

Her mom always had a deep love for food despite the fact that she could never cook it herself.

"I just pulled out a lasagna," she answered. "Dinner is all ready if you're ready to eat."

"If I'm ready to eat?" she asked loudly. "I'm always ready to eat!"

The three sat down at the table and Stevie filled them in about everything that was happening at school and with her friends. Stevie tried her best to focus on the questions her parents were asking her as she was so distracted with the nagging thought that she had to tell them. She thought she was doing a good job at hiding her worry until she was interrupted by her own thoughts by her mom.

"Honey, are you sure everything's all right?" she asked with deep concern.

"You seem to be in your own little world." Stevie looked up from the spot on the table that she had been staring at and looked at the slightly worried faces of her parents. She hated having to see them worried. Her mom had so much to deal with at work, she didn't deserve to have to worry at home. And her dad was always the rock of the family, and she hated to add more to his shoulders.

She took a deep breath and moved her eyes downward to where her hands now sat on her lap.

She could feel the tension in the air as her parents waited to hear something from their daughter and she waited for the courage to tell them.

"I need to tell you guys something and I have absolutely zero idea of how to do it," she started. "I haven't been feeling well lately," she said looking up at her mom. "And I went to the doctor who ran some tests…." she trailed off and looked back at her hands.

"She said that I have Leukemia," she finished. She heard her mom gasp and finally pulled for face up to look at her. Her mom's hands were cupped around her mouth in shock and her head was viciously shaking in disbelief. Tears had already filled her mom's eyes and her mom swiftly moved over to hug her daughter more fiercely than she had ever before.

Not only did tears spring to her eyes as well, but also to her dad's, whose face displayed a mixture of shock and fear. She had never seen that mixture of emotion from her dad before and that unnerved her even more.

They all sat there for a few minutes taking everything in. Her mom finally released her and was about to speak when her dad opened his mouth.

"What else did the doctor say?" her dad said, breaking the silence.

"Uh," she started, trying to focus. "She gave the number of some specialists here in the city that I needed to contact. I contacted one of them today, his name is Dr. Sampson and said he wanted to see me for more detailed tests tomorrow," she said.

"So tomorrow morning at 9, I'm having more blood tests and a bone marrow aspiration," she said moving her eyes between her parents. They were both eagerly absorbing the information as if it was the most important information in the world. "He said that these tests will tell us not only what type of Leukemia I have, but also what stage I'm in."

Each one of her parents has grabbed one of her hands and looked at her with all the love in the world. "Sweetie, I wish you would've called us as soon as you were feeling sick," her mom said guiltily. Nodding her head in agreement, Stevie spoke. "I know I should've mentioned it so that it wouldn't have been such a complete shock but I didn't want to worry you two with something that might not have been crucial. You both are soo busy with your jobs, and I..."

She was quickly interrupted by her dad.

"Never feel like you can't come to us about anything," he said firmly. "Yes, we may have stressful jobs; but you are our daughter and you and your brother and sister are the most important things in the world to us," he finished.

"Your father is right, never feel bad about coming to talk to us about anything. But that's in the past now… What's important now, is that you've told us and that we are going to get you treatment and make you well," her mom said. "Your father and I are going to go with you to your appointment tomorrow and we will just have to take everything one step at a time."

"Okay?," her mom said with a quivering voice.

Nodding her head, she stood up and gave both of her parents each another huge hug.  
"It's been a long day and I'm really tired. I'm going to go up to bed," she said as she made her way towards the stairs.

"Goodnight Sweetie," she heard her father say from behind her.

"We love you!," her mother shouted as she was midway up the stairs.

"Goodnight, love you too," she replied.

As she finally folded herself under her covers, she broke down. Her tears weren't the same as the day before. These tears had a small aspect of relief to them. She had told her parents which had felt like she lifted a huge burden from her shoulders, not having to keep such a huge secret anymore. But although there was relief, her tears matched the unknown and uncertainty of what would lie ahead.

 **I am very happy to see feedback regarding this story. I definitely struggle when writing super dramatic scenes and I really hope that I portrayed it well. Please continue to leave reviews and comments as these are one of the main reasons for why I keep writing. I have a general idea of how I want to continue this story, but any ideas/suggestions are greatly appreciated.**

 **Thanks.**


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